Lamp shade and method of making



July 19, 1955 E. Y. FINE 2,713,632

LAMP SHADE AND METHOD OF MAKING Filed NOV. 5, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR 5R L Sing FIIE ATTORN EY July 19, 1955 E. Y. FINE LAMP SHADE AND METHOD OF MAKING 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 5, 1952 18 INVENTOR 17m ne- E e" W ATTORNEY United States Patent O 2,713,632 LAMP SHADE AND METHOD or MAKING Earl Yale Fine, New York, N. Y. Application November 5, 1952, Serial No. 318,923 8 Claims. (Cl. 240-108) This invention relates to lamp shades, and more particularly, to a novel method for making hand finished lamp shades and to the articles fabricated thereby.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved method of the character described pursuant to which the outside fabric of a lamp shade can be easily and speedily attached to a wire frame and in such a way that the mode of attachment is not apparent to the eye.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of the character described which is much less expensive to perform than conventional methods of making lamp shades.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a hand finished lamp shade which has desirable ornamental characteristics and is inexpensive to manufacture.

Other objects of my invention will in part be obvious and in part will be pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in'the features of construction, combinations of elements, arrangements of parts and series of steps which will be exemplified in the device and method hereinafter described and of which the scope of application will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings in which is shown one of the various possible embodiments of my invention:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a bass wire lamp shade frame used in carrying out the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the frame shown in Fig. 1;.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of a detail of the frame, the same being taken substantially along the'line,3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the frameshown in Fig. 1, but after the cover has been attached;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional .yiew; taken substantially along the line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the frame shown in Fig. 1, but after both the cover and the lining have been attached;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 7-7 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of the upper portion of a finished lamp shade constructed according to the present invention; and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 99 of Fig. 8.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the reference numeral 10 denotes a wire lamp shade frame having a pair of identical wire hoops 12, 14 at the top and a pair of identical wire hoops 16, 18 at the bottom, said pairs of hoops being joined by vertical ribs 20 suitably secured to the hoops, as by welding. A ring 22 adapted to receive the threaded stud of a lamp harp is held centrally and in the plane of the lower of the top pair of hoops, namely, the hoop 14, by horizontal wires 24 suitably attached to the ring and hoops 14 as by welding.

It is by use of a frame having pairs of hoops at the top and the bottom that the present invention is carried 2,713,632 Patented July l9, 1955 out. Generally, the frames employed in hand making of lamp shades have a single hoop at the top and at the bottom. The hoops and ribs are wrapped with tape, and the cover and lining are sewn thereto. ever, is a long and tedious job and requires skilled workers.

According to the present invention, an open-ended fabric cover 26 pre-sewn in approximately the size of the frame is fitted over the'latter. Said cover is adapted to fit the frame quite snugly. The top and bottom edges of the cover are slit in registry with the ribs to form tabs 27.

The upper edge of each tab is slipped beneath the top hoop 12 and brought back over said hoop, i. e. retroverted, to overlie the cover. The turned back tab 26 then is stapled to the cover between the two hoops 12, 14. The stapling is performed by a'suitable machine such, e. g., as a stapling machine (not shown). The same operation is performed at the bottom of the frame with the lower tabs being passed under the lowermost rib 18 and the turned back (retroverted) tabs 27 stapled between the hoops. Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate quite clearly the structure resulting from these steps.

Because the staples are located between the pairs of hoops, they will not stick out beyond the hoops as they would if there were only one hoop, but instead will lie recessed inwardly between the hoops. Thus, when-a tape 30 is sewed about the pairs of hoops, its ornamental effect will not be disfigured by the staples. Prior to the addition of the tape, a lining 32 is sewn in place, said lining extending over the uppermost and lowermost hoops and being sewn by lines of sewing 34 to the cover. The tape is attached to the outlying portions of the lining by lines of sewing '36.

It is thus apparent that although the tedious method of hand sewing the cover to a lamp shade frame is not employed and although stapling is used, a hand made shade is produced which requires very little skill or time to make and in which the staples do not impair the appearance of the finished article. It should be noted that tapes are not necessary and that on the basic lamp shade as manufactured according to method various ornamental designs may be placed by means of tape disposed in diverse ways on the fabric.

Thus it will be seen that there is provided a device and method which achieve all the objects of the invention and are well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might bemade of the above invention, and as various changes might be made in the embodiment above set fort it is to be understood that all matter herein described, or shown in the accompanying drawings, is to be interposed as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described the invention, there is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent:

1. A method of making hand finished lamp shades, said method including the steps of fitting an open-ended fabric cover, which is continuous in a vertical direction, about a lamp shade frame having pairs of wire hoops at the top and bottom thereof joined by vertical ribs, slitting the upper and lower edges of the cover in line with the ribs to form fabric tabs in one piece with the fabric cover, slipping the upper tabs beneath the uppermost hoop of the top pair, folding said upper tabs over said uppermost hoop, turning the folded over upper tabs downwardly, and then only by a row of closely spaced staples securing said tabs to the cover itself between the upper hoops along a line parallel to and adjacent the upper hoops; slipping the lower tabs beneath the lowermost hoop of the lower pair, folding said lower tabs under said lowermost hoop, turning the folded 3 under lower tabs upwardly, and then only by a row of closely spaced staples securing the folded under lower tabs to the cover between the lower hoops along the line parallel to and adjacent the lower hoops.

2. A method of making hand finished lamp shades, said method including the steps of fitting an open-ended fabric cover, which is continuous in a vertical direction, about a lamp shade frame having pairs of wire hoops at the top and bottom thereof joined by vertical ribs, slitting the upper and lower edges of the cover in line with the ribs to form fabric tabs in one piece with the fabric cover, slipping the upper tabs beneath the uppermost hoop of the top pair, folding said upper tabs over said uppermost hoop, turning the folded over upper tabs downwardly, and then only by a row of closely spaced staples securing said tabs to the cover itself between the upper hoops along a line parallel to and adjacent the upper hoops; slipping the lower tabs beneath the lowermost hoop of the lower pair, folding said lower tabs under said lowermost hoop, turning upwardly, and then only by a row of closely spaced staples securing the folded under lower tabs to the cover itself between the lower hoops along a line parallel to and adjacent the lower hoops; applying a lining to the frame, disposing ornamental tapes about the pairs of hoops, and sewing the cover, lining and tapes together.

3. A hand finished lamp shade, said lamp shade including a frame, said frame comprising a pair of wire hoops at the top and a pair of hoops at the bottom, vertical ribs joining said hoops, a fabric cover which is continuous in a vertical direction and is stretched over said frame, fabric tabs in one piece with and extending from the upper and lower edges of the cover out of alignment with the ribs, each upper tab having a portion retroverted over the upper the free end of each upper tab extending downwardly, means constituting a row of closely spaced staples only which are located between said upper pair of hoops and connect the upper tabs to the cover itself, said staples running along a line parallel to and adjacent the upper hoops; and each lower tab having a portion retroverted under the lower of the lower pair of hoops, the free end of each lower tab extending upwardly, and means constituting a row of closely spaced staples only which are located between said lower pair of hoops and connect the lower tabs to the cover itself, said staples running along a line parallel to and adjacent the lower hoops.

4. A hand finished lamp shade, said lamp shade including a frame, hoops at the top and vertical ribs joining said hoops, a fabric cover which is continuous in a vertical direction and is stretched over said frame, fabric tabs in one piece with and extending the folded under lower tab of the upper pair of hoops, I

lit

said frame comprising a pair of wire 2 a pair of hoops at the bottom,

4. from the upper and lower edges of the cover out of alignment with the ribs, each upper tab having a portion retroverted over the upper of the upper pair of hoops, the free end of each upper tab extending downwardly, means constituting a row of closely spaced staples only which are located between said upper pair of hoops and connect the upper tabs to the cover itself, said staples running along a line parallel to and adjacent the upper hoops; each lower tab having a portion retroverted under the lower of the lower pair of hoops, the free end of each lower tab extending upwardly, means constituting a row of closely spaced staples only which are located between said lower pair of hoops and connect the lower tabs to the cover itself, said staples running along a line parallel to and adjacent the lower hoops; and ornamental tapes sewed around each pair of hoops.

5. A method of making a lamp shade, said method including the steps of fitting an open-ended fabric cover, which is continuous in a vertical direction, about a lamp shade frame having hoops at the top and bottom thereof joined by a skeleton framework, folding the upper and lower edges of the fabric cover over the top and bottom hoops respectively, and then, while the cover is stretched, only by a row of closely spaced staples securing said folded over fabric cover edges directly to the fabric cover itself along lines parallel to and adjacent the hoops.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein ornamental tapes are sewed to the cover on the exterior of the shade in the planes of the top and bottom hoops.

7. A lamp shade including a frame, said frame comprising a pair of hoops, one at the top and one at the bottom of the frame and a skeleton framework interconnecting said hoops, a fabric cover which is continuous in a vertcal direction and is stretched over said frame, the upper and lower edges of said cover being folded around the top and bottom hoops respectively, and means constituting only a row of closely spaced staples connecting said folded over fabric cover edges to the fabric cover itself along lines parallel to and adjacent the hoops.

8. A lamp shade as set forth in claim 7 wherein ornamental tapes are disposed around the exterior of the cover in the planes of the top and bottom hoops and wherein stitching is provided securing the tapes to the cover.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

